City employees in Cebu receive monetary incentives.
Brilliant News for Cebu City Hall Employees!
Finally, the wait is over for over 3,000 Cebu City Hall employees who have been eagerly anticipating the release of their Charter Day bonuses! This relief comes following the conclusion of the election spending ban imposed by the Commision on Elections (Comelec).
In a chat on Tuesday, May 13, 2025, Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia shared that he has already ordered the City Administrator to initiate the disbursement of the incentives. However, the exact date when the funds will be credited to the employees' accounts still remains a mystery.
"Usually, the cash gets deposited into their ATMs at night. I'm not sure. I already gave the order today, so I'm not sure when it'll be possible to release it, whether tonight or tomorrow," the mayor clarified, mixing Cebuano and English.
The Charter Day bonus is an annual tradition for eligible Cebu City Hall employees, given in honor of the city's founding anniversary celebrated every February 24. This year's bonus — P35,000 for regular and casual employees and P5,000 for job order personnel — was integrated into the City's first supplemental budget. The budget was endorsed by the Cebu City Council on March 26.
The timing of the budget approval was almost synonymous with the commencement of the election period. An election prohibition on the dissemination of public funds took effect on March 28 and persisted until Election Day on Monday, May 12. Consequently, the City Government was unable to distribute the bonuses as planned, leading to a protracted delay of over a month since the budget's approval.
Mayor Garcia had earlier solicited guidance from the Comelec about the potential release of the bonuses despite the ban, but the City did not receive a positive response prior to the expiry of the election period.
[1] The bonuses might be disbursed around the same time following May 12 or the subsequent day.[2] Information derived from a reliable City Government source.
- The Cebu City Hall employees can expect their Charter Day bonuses to be disbursed within a few days following the expiry of the election period on May 12, as stated by a City Government source.
- The approval and integration of the City's first supplemental budget, which includes the Charter Day bonuses, coincided with the start of the election period, leading to a delay in the distribution of the bonuses.
- In the aftermath of the elections, the Commision on Elections (Comelec) imposed a ban on the dissemination of public funds, preventing the City Government from distributing the Charter Day bonuses as planned.
- The release of the Charter Day bonuses for over 3,000 Cebu City Hall employees has been highly anticipated, following the conclusion of the election spending ban imposed by Comelec, as announced by Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia.
